Recent Updates

Crossing Lake Michigan on the SS Badger

On our way to EAA Airventure this year, we took the SS Badger car ferry across Lake Michigan. The ship travels between Manitowoc and Ludington, with two departures from each port daily. The trip takes around 4 hours.

The ship was large and comfortable. There was plenty of room for everyone in the spacious seating areas.

Several food options were available on the ship, including a breakfast buffet on our morning departure. Other on-board amenities included a small museum, a well stocked gift shop, a movie viewing lounge, two television viewing lounges, a children's play area, and a large lounge with "Badger Bingo" being played. Another large seating are featured live music and singing several times during the cruise.

I had a good time on both crossings and will likely ride the SS Badger again if an opportunity presents itself.

Posted 30 September 2017

New Game Uploaded

I have uploaded a new game, called Tile Spell, to the webpage.

The game combines features of my previous word search game and tile matching game. Like Mahjong games, the goal is to remove all tiles from the board. Select free tiles, that spell one of the words listed on the right side, and the tiles will be removed. Each game has 27 words to find. The words are randomly selected from a list of 150 words.

Play testers have reported some bugs, but the feedback has been mostly positive. I think this might be my best game so far.

Updated 6 March 2016

Photos From Oshkosh Trip

Some photos from my trip to EAA Airventure Oshkosh during July.

Ferry Ride Across Lake Michigan

We took the Lake Express car ferry across Lake Michigan both ways. The ship travels between Muskegon and Milwaukee, with three departures from each port daily. The trip takes around 2 1/2 hours.

Goodyear "Wingfoot One" Airship

The Goodyear airship, Wingfoot One, was a frequent sight in the skys above Oshkosh throughout the week.

The airship was assembled in Akron, Ohio, with many components being constructed by ZLT Zeppelin Luftschifftechnik in Germany.

The semi-rigid design allows for increased payload, speed, and maneuverability compared to Goodyear's existing fleet of blimps. Goodyear plans to replace all its blimps with the new design in the coming years.

Airbus A350 Airliner

An Airbus A350 XWB performed several flight demonstrations during Airventure.

Posted 31 October 2015

Word Search Game Updated

Pause Button

Per a user request, I have added a pause function to my Word Search Game.

Pause can be activated by a button on the control panel in the lower right of the game window.

New Word Lists

I have also added two new word lists, "Geologic Time Scale" and "Math Terms".

Posted 26 October 2015

New Game Added

I've recently added a new browser game. It's a tile matching game called Tile Match.

When a new game is started, tiles randomly populate the board. Click on any two matching tiles, that are not blocked on either the left or right, and the tiles will be removed. The goal is to remove all tiles from play.

The initial version includes three tile sets, spacecraft, card suits and brushed runes. Each tile set includes 108 tiles, comprised of 27 images, each repeated four times. Four tile layout designs are available.

Features

A shuffle button is available if the player reaches a point where no tile matches are available. However, only two shuffles are available for each game.

Selecting the "Hint" button will highlight a pair of matching tiles.

The game uses some basic animations and sound effects. Buttons are available to turn these features off if desired.

Future Upgrades

Future upgrades might include a scoring system. A player might earn a point for each pair of tiles matched, with bonus points awarded for matching several tile pairs in quick succession, or for matching two sets of identical tiles in a row. Higher scores would allow the player to earn extra shuffles.

If I do implement a scoring system, I might add additional tile sets and tile layouts.

Posted 19 September 2015

New Games Added

I've recently added a pair of new browser games, Blackjack and Memory.

Both of these games should work with the touch-screen on mobile devices. Most of my previous games require a mouse as the input device and do not work properly with touch-screens.

NOTE: I'm finding that the games are not loading consistently on some devices. If the games do not open, try refreshing the page.

Blackjack

Here is my version of the popular casino game, Blackjack.

Players start by placing a bet. By default, a $5 bet will be placed automatically. Players can increase the bet by clicking on the chips at the lower left. To decrease a bet, click on the chips in the "Bet" area.

To deal the cards, click on the deck of cards in the upper right. Once the cards are dealt, a pop-up window will present players with several play options. Depending on the circumstances, the options can include "Hit", "Stand", "Double Down", or "Split".

Players, if presented with cards of the same rank on the initial deal, may be given the option to split the hand. (If the player lacks sufficient funds to match their current bet, the "split" option will not be presented.

Players can continue to press "Hit" until they bust, or until they press "Stand".

This game does not currently support surrendering or insurance.

Memory

Memory is the type of game where users are presented with an array of face-down playing cards. Players turn the cards over, two at a time, trying to find matching cards. If matching cards are selected, they will remain face up. The goal is to have all cards face up.

The game allows users to choose from three difficulty levels, based on the number of cards involved.

Game stats, such as number of plays made, percent complete, and elapsed time, are included at the bottom of the game. When a game is complete, click anywhere on the game display to open the game menu.

Posted 12 November 2013

Photos From My Visit to Airventure 2013

Ford Tri-Motor Ride

While at the convention, I took a ride on a Ford Tri-Motor.

Photo Sets Added to the Aviation Galleries

Below are links to new photo sets for several aircraft. I have also added photos of three more DC-3 / C-47 aircraft to the airliners page

Hawker Sea Fury

The Hawker Sea Fury was a fighter operated by the Royal Navy. The aircraft entered service in the mid 1940's.

(9 Photos)

MiG 15

Manufactured by Mikoyan-Gurevich, the Soviet MiG-15 first flew during the late 1940's.

(9 Photos)

MiG 21

Manufactured by Mikoyan-Gurevich, the Soviet MiG-21 first flew during the mid 1950's.

(9 Photos)

OV-1 Mohawk

The OV-1 Mohawk was an American attack and observation aircraft. The OV-1 was manufactured by Grumman and first flew in 1959.

(15 Photos)

PBY Catalina

The PBY Catalina was a flying boat used by the United States and several allied countries. The Catalina was manufactured by Consolidated Aircraft and entered service in the mid 1930's.

(16 Photos)

P-40 Warhawk

The Curtiss P-40 Warhawk first flew during the late 1930's.

(10 Photos)

SB2C Helldiver

Built by Curtiss, the SB2C was an American carrier-based dive bomber. The aircraft entered service in the early 1940's.

(11 Photos)

Posted 5 November 2013

Game Descriptions

Opening the "Games" link on the menu above now opens a page containing descriptions for several browser games I've created.

The games are made using HTML 5 and JavaScript. I've tested the games in current versions of Firefox and Chrome. Many of these games do not work properly in older browsers.

Several more games are in progress and I will be uploading them in the future.

Posted 16 July 2013

Some Photos of a Fire at the Former Consumers Energy Building on May 31st.

A fire at the former Consumers Energy headquarters building briefly trapped several workers on Friday afternoon. Firefighters were able to extinguish the fire and rescue the trapped workers. No injuries were reported.

The building has been undergoing demolition for the last several months.

The building is only a few blocks from my apartment, so I was able to take some photos of the action.

Photos

More information about the fire can be found at the following link.

Posted 1 June 2013

Some Photos of Ongoing Demolitions in Jackson

Two major buildings are coming down in Jackson. One is a former Sheraton hotel, while the other formerly served as headquarters for Consumers Energy.

A few years ago, the empty hotel was used to film a Sony commercial featuring Alice Cooper. The video can be seen on YouTube.

Hotel Demolition

Photos Taken on December 7th

Photos Taken on December 25th

Preparing the Former Consumers Energy Building for Demolition in 2013

Photos Taken on December 25th

Posted 27 December 2012

Visit to the Michigan Renaissance Festival

Just wanted to upload a few photos from a visit to the Michigan Renaissance Festival.

The annual event is located near Holly, Michigan and operated on weekends from August 18 thru September 30th this year.

Hundreds of performers and vendors provided a variety of entertainment, food and craft items. Special demonstrations included jousting, fencing and falconry.

I had a good time and will try to visit again next year.

Posted 13 October 2012

Jackson Civil War Muster

Some photos from my visit to the 2012 Jackson Civil War Muster. The event was held on August 25 and 26 this year.

Posted 13 October 2012

EAA Airventure

I visited EAA-AirVenture in July. One special event this time was a performance by the group Tora, Tora, Tora. The group, associated with the Commemorative Air Force, flew a number of replica aircraft depicting the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor.

I looked through my Airventure 2012 photos and added some new photo-sets to my archives. Updates include images for a UH-60 Blackhawk, an EA-6B Prowler, an Airbus A-300, and a McDonnell Douglas DC-10.

I have rearranged the photo galleries a little. Helicopters are now on their own page.

Photos

Posted 3 October 2012